Author: Donny

Ghost in the Shell 2017

I found myself appreciating the live action Ghost in the Shell movie, but did find it lacking in some emotion. Given this is a story about AIs, cybernetically enhanced people and robots, maybe that is to be expected.

I cannot compare this to the original animated movie from the 90s. It has just been so long since I saw it that it would not be fair. Plus, I expect plenty of differences when something is adapted from one medium to another.

I enjoyed this take on defining a sense of Self and Identity. We see characters lose and find themselves. One sequence with a Father wanting to see his daughter felt poignant. A mother discussing her deceased daughter also hits you.

Starring: Scarlett Johansson, Pilou Asbæk, Takeshi Kitano, Juliette Binoche, Michael Pitt, Chin Han, Danusia Samal, Lasarus Ratuere, Yutaka Izumihara, Tawanda Manyimo, Peter Ferdinando, Anamaria Marinca

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Power Rangers

I was never that into Power Rangers when I was younger. It was not the low budget special effects of the Zords and fight scenes, it was more the American scenes. I loved the concept, it felt like a live-action Voltron.

But this movie…this movie right here spoke to the adult me. You have 5 very different people come together and slowly build a rapport. The diversity does not feel forced. You just have 5 kids from different walks of life. When they get their powers, they are not immediate masters of them.

If you are a fan of the original series, you probably have already seen this. If you were not a fan, give it a shot. I saw a lot of parents bringing their kids to see this movie and the kids loved it. They had scenes they cheered for and scenes that had them worried for the heroes.

This was not a perfect movie by any stretch. But I found it just as fun and interesting (in a different way) than Life.

And yes, they do break out the classic theme song at one point in the movie. :)

Starring:Dacre Montgomery, Naomi Scott, RJ Cyler, Ludi Lin, Becky G., Elizabeth Banks, Bryan Cranston, Bill Hader

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Logan

I caught Logan and it gave a nice cap to the Fox X-Men series and High Jackman’s run as Wolverine.

Logan definitely earns its R rating. Plenty of violence and foul language (some from an unexpected source) with brief nudity. I would not recommend bringing young children to see this movie.

We are introduced to a world 29 years removed from the events of the first X-Men movie. A world seemingly without mutants and a Wolverine showing the effects of aging and a slowed down healing factor. We get introduced to Laura (X-23) at the same time Logan does.

At first Laura seems like a normal if mute little girl. Until she is not. She turns into a little Tasmanian Devil , Whirling Dervish of destruction. Easily more violent and vicious than we have seen Logan before. Then, we get the road trip from Hell with Logan, Laura and Professor X.

This movie leaves the door open for more future films in this series, but also leaves it at a good finishing point. Barring the Deadpool franchise, I would love to see a reboot of the X-Men movies with different people at the helm.

FYI, There are no mid-credit or post-credit scenes.

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Dafne Keen, Boyd Holbrook, Stephen Merchant, Richard E. Grant, Jason Genao

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John Wick: Chapter Two

John Wick 2 opens with John putting a pin on the Russian mob vendetta he began in the first movie.

This movie gets going when an old acquaintance calls in a favor John owes him. Things do not go quite as smooth as everyone hoped on their end. This leaves John with a larger vendetta than the first one.

The movie definitely sets up the final chapter in this trilogy.

I did enjoy this movie a good bit. I still think the first John Wick movie is better. But it had the good luck to introduce this world to me.

Starring: Keanu Reeves, Riccardo Scamarcio, Ian McShane, Ruby Rose, Common, Claudia Gerini, Laurence Fishburne

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Office Christmas Party

Office Christmas Party is a fun little movie. The plot revolves around the “Save the Rec Center” and is predictable – but was fun anyway. This movie would be best seen with a huge crowd in a theater.

The premise of the movie is that a brother has to save his failing branch of the family’s tech company before his sister can close them down. To say they do not have the best of relationships would be an understatement. To land the deal that is supposed to save the company, the brother expands their canceled wine and cheese christmas party to an over the top event. With a DJ, snow machine, live reindeer, eggnog luge, etc.

We get to see how things start out fine, then progressively worsen as the night goes on.

Starring: Jason Bateman, Olivia Munn, T.J. Miller, Jennifer Aniston, Kate McKinnon, Courtney B. Vance, Jillian Bell, Rob Corddry, Vanessa Bayer, Randall Park, Sam Richardson, Karan Soni

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